Hi guys!

I just wanted to report back with positive news since I know how depressing it is to be in pain and only see the painful stories.

The fun started last year in September. 3 fissurectomies (2 with botox) and my doc says it's healed! It was a very slow process and I still feel some pressure for hours after passing stool. I have no pain but I can tell where it happened. I had hypergranulation tissue after the 2nd procedure. There was some after the 3rd one but my doc didn't want to touch it anymore so I had to wait months for it to go away on its own. I'm not using Miralax, only Benefiber 2x day. I eat normal food and take it easy with lifting things or moving around too much. I just don't like the "feeling" there since it's like a constant reminder. I'm guessing it will stick around for some time.

I tried nitro and the other ointment- no help. Also vitamin E, coconut oil, manuka honey, neosporin. I tried gluten free, IBS diet, veggies only diet, no dairy, no caffeine,... Honestly, only the surgeries made a difference. Baths didn't help either.

Itching - I know we all want to believe it means it's healing but my itching was from the fissure oozing and yeast infection. If it's burning during/after and you see red swollen skin with white patches it's a yeast infection. I learned it the hard way. Sitting in the warm tub and not drying properly afterwards did it to me. I now put a paper towel there to dry it properly and still use Nystatin just in case.

I just want everyone to know that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Some heal fast, some slow. It depends on your age, prior surgeries in the area, where your fissure is located (I had 2, one going quite far and deep), what you do and so on. Every healed millimeter is earned. Don't be scared of surgery. Each one helped me get closer and I never felt worse than before. Don't despair, you will get there!!

Thanks for the encouraging words, I really needed to read that today. I had LIS in June 2017, it has been a very slow healing process, I actually had no bleeding for 5 weeks and then wouldn't you know some bleeding today. I feel like I will never totally heal but trying to stay positive.

Did you have the LIS surgery or just the two botox. And I see you joined in 2016, has it taken over one year for you to heal?

I am now off to take my Benifiber and I just ordered a squaty potty, my CRS recommended it.

Yes, over one year. I can still tell where it was when I bend or do something unusual. I had 3 fissurectomies, 2 of them with botox. It took so long for the botox to work that I regretted not doing LIS. I was still having spasm (much milder) 6 weeks after the 1st one. Then all the pain stopped but I would still bleed. One of the tags also started to fill up with pus so the doc had to make a cut. He called it a superficial fistula. And the 3rd time it was the tissue which prevented it from closing so you can see that it was a rocky road. The entire time I was convinced I would never heal. I would cry and cry. My social, sexual and professional life on hold and docs looking at me like I was bothering them. They didn't understand that driving, sitting, walking, coughing, laughing is now painful and difficult. This condition really doesn't seem to be "appreciated" by those who have never lived it, especially the docs.

Instead of focusing on the bad I realized I should enjoy the little victories - laying on my back for 10 min, walking without a limp. And then I saw all the progress I had made and started to believe I could heal! The last 2 months I could tell that it was really picking up and the progress was fast.

If you were without blood for 5 weeks then this was probably just a little hiccup. Also focus on how it feels. That should tell you if the bleeding really meant something or not.

This is going to sound funny but I don't sit on the toilet anymore. I wait until nature really calls and then do it while standing... sort of. I always felt like the less spreading I do the better.

You will heal!!

I totally agree only those that have had a fissure truly understand. This forum is a great source of support. Thanks for answering me, it makes me stay positive!